Ripples Along the Shore

Praise for
Dandelions on the Wind
The Quilted Heart, Novella One

“Like a warm breeze ripples across a lake,
Dandelions on the Wind
offers a gentle crossing in this first-in-a-series novel. Mona Hodgson gives readers characters we care about, a bit of intrigue, love, and a satisfying ending that promises more in the second series book. Well done!”

—J
ANE
K
IRKPATRICK
, best-selling author of
Where Lilacs Still Bloom

“Filled with true-to-life characters and fascinating historical details,
Dandelions on the Wind
is a heartwarming story of second chances in the turbulent days immediately after the Civil War. Don’t miss this, the first of Mona Hodgson’s The Quilted Heart trilogy. If you’re like me, you’ll be waiting eagerly for the second.”

—A
MANDA
C
ABOT
, author of
Waiting for Spring

“
Dandelions on the Wind
is a sweet tale about the merging of two hurting hearts. The characters drew me, and I can’t wait to read more about their lives … and their love!”

—T
RICIA
G
OYER
, best-selling author of thirty-three novels, including
The Memory Jar

“In
Dandelions on the Wind
, Mona Hodgson weaves a tale of broken promises, wounded hearts … and the power of forgiveness—a heartwarming reminder that we walk by faith, not by sight. Maren is a heroine you’ll cheer for!”

—C
AROL
C
OX
, author of
Love in Disguise
and
Trouble in Store

Praise for
Bending Toward the Sun
The Quilted Heart, Novella Two

“Mona Hodgson’s
Bending Toward the Sun
captures Saint Charles following the Civil War so well. Quaid returns home—a man changed by the war. Emilie is a delight—a young woman pursuing her education, who knows her own mind. And even though the war has changed so many things, this story reminds us that some things, like love, never change.”

—D
ORRIS
K
EEVEN
-F
RANKE
, archivist, Saint Charles County Historical Society

“Mona Hodgson has written a warm, tender tale of family loyalties and forbidden love. When Emilie’s father objects to her seeing the handsome McFarland boy, recently returned from war, the couple struggles to do the right thing. But they are about to discover that God has another plan. Filled with charming characters and godly themes, this heartwarming story is pure delight.”

—M
ARGARET
B
ROWNLEY
,
New York Times
best-selling author of A Rocky Creek Romance Series and the Brides of Last Chance Ranch Series

“With believable characters, an historic setting, and a gripping love story, Mona Hodgson gives the reader an uplifting account of a time when our country was recovering from a dark period and looking forward to a brighter future.”

—M
ARTHA
R
OGERS
, author of the Winds Across the Prairie Series and the best-selling
Christmas at Holly Hill

RIPPLES ALONG THE SHORE
PUBLISHED BY WATERBROOK PRESS
12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200
Colorado Springs, Colorado 80921

All Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version.

This is a work of fiction. Apart from well-known people, events, and locales that figure into the narrative, all names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

eISBN: 978-0-307-73145-6

Copyright © 2013 by Mona Hodgson

Cover design by Kelly Howard

Published in association with the literary agency of Janet Kobobel Grant, Books & Such, 52 Mission Circle, Suite 122, PMB 170, Santa Rosa, CA 95409-5370.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House Inc., New York.

WATERBROOK and its deer colophon are registered trademarks of Random House Inc.

v3.1

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Epigraph

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Author’s Note

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Other Books by Mona Hodgson

Caroline’s story is dedicated to all of my readers who have been widowed; who have found themselves looking for a new normal, one without the physical presence of their beloved spouse
.

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

—James 4:10

One

T
he side-paddles of the
New Era
churned the waters of the Missouri River while perplexing thoughts and feelings washed over Caroline. Standing on the crowded deck, she pulled her cape tight and looked toward the stretch of snowy shoreline that fronted Saint Charles. Her sister would be awaiting her return, along with her two nieces and nephew. It had already been two months since she’d received the letter from the Department of War with word of Phillip’s demise. Now that her aunt also had passed, they were all the family she had left.

Aunt Inez had bequeathed her home and worldly possessions to the sisters, and Jewell wouldn’t have denied Caroline had she wished to stay in Memphis. But why would she stay? At least in Saint Charles, she had Jewell and the quilting circle—Emilie, Maren, Mrs. Brantenberg, Hattie, and all of the other women who had befriended her.

Caroline glanced toward the upper deck where the dapper fellow with a handlebar mustache stood. Looking her way, he brushed the brim of his white top hat. She smiled, then pressed her gloved hand to her warming face. Lewis G. Whibley had been the first man to flatter her since Phillip had left for the war.

And she couldn’t escape the irony of the vessel’s name for her voyage: the
New Era
. She had indeed been ushered into change. 1866. The New Year had dawned last week, and it was high time she had something—or someone—new to think about. Mr. Whibley seemed a perfect fit for that order; however, he had no plans to disembark. Caroline was more than a little tempted to remain on the boat herself. If she hadn’t wired Jewell of her passage and return today—

“Yoo-hoo, Mrs. Milburn!”

Caroline recognized the voice of the woman who had seated herself at her meal table earlier in the afternoon. “Mrs. Kamden.”

“We’ll reach shore soon, you know.” The woman now stood beside her at the gate.

Swallowing her amusement with the woman’s knack for stating the obvious, Caroline tried to ignore the furtive glances of the stately man standing at the upper railing, a mere fifteen feet away. “Indeed, we will, ma’am. Will your son be waiting for you?”

Mrs. Kamden adjusted the hat that crowned her silver hair. “My daughter-in-law, actually. Ian is a wheelwright, which makes him a busy man.”

“That makes perfect sense with so many folks readying wagons for the trail.” It was contagious—now
she
was stating the obvious. More than a little distracted, Caroline turned away from her view of the deck above her, focusing on the approaching shoreline.

The petite woman pushed round spectacles up the bridge of her narrow nose. “You mentioned having a sister in Saint Charles?”

“Yes. Jewell. She lives there with her husband and three children.”

“Are they planning to go?”

“Go?”

“Why, west, of course.”

Of course. Caroline hadn’t discussed with her sister the possibility of going west. She’d left for Tennessee soon after the wagon train hubbub started. No need to talk about it,
anyway. Doing something so daring would require her brother-in-law to possess at least a small measure of gumption. She scolded herself for her sour outlook on the man. He was, after all, married to her sister.

“I don’t know that my sister and her family have any plans to join the caravan.”

“I told you I’m going to Idaho with my son?”

Caroline nodded. That would be a cramped wagon … no matter how big it was. Her son and daughter-in-law had five children.

“It’s a mite brisk out here, but I didn’t want to miss the excitement of reaching the shore.” Mrs. Kamden pressed her hand to the knit scarf encircling her neck. “It may be forward of me to ask, but what are you going to do … now that you’re a widow?”

Caroline’s stomach knotted.
Widow
. She’d always allocated that awful label to women for whom she felt pity.

The woman’s question, however, did deserve thought. What was she going to do without Phillip? She’d been living with Jewell and Jack for nearly six months. It was one thing to stay with them while waiting for an answer concerning Phillip’s fate, but now that she knew … She met Mrs. Kamden’s brown-eyed gaze and shrugged. “I haven’t yet come to a decision. There was no time for such ponderings while caring for my aunt.”

“But now that your aunt has passed—may the good Lord rest her soul in peace—you’ll be ready for a change, won’t you?”

Had her brother-in-law paid this woman to encourage her to move out? A juvenile notion, but he’d made it clear that having another adult taking up space in their modest house—and dividing his wife’s attention—was a hardship.

Caroline sighed. She did need to do something with her life, but what?

“When Mr. Kamden died from the cholera, I wasn’t as young as you. Nor was I as handsome.” The older woman glanced upstairs. “You’ll have no trouble turning the head of a suitable man. Why, you’re already drawing such attentions.”

The woman’s nervous giggle tensed Caroline’s shoulders. No one could take Phillip’s place in her heart. “I’m not seeking a replacement for my husband.”

“Perhaps you should, dear.”

Perhaps she should. Unlike her forthright deck companion, Caroline didn’t have a son to set her in a wagon and take her to Oregon.

Thankfully, Mrs. Kamden became distracted as the boat reversed its paddles. The
New Era
gently nudged the shore and the stage swung out to meet the riverbank.

Caroline’s family awaited her at the edge of the mud. Emilie Heinrich stood with Jewell and the children, all of them waving. She directed the deckhand to her trunk and followed it down the stage. When the gangly young man set her trunk off to the side in the snow, she pulled a coin from her seam pocket and thanked him for his help.

“Auntie Carol-i!” Her skirt churning, her four-year-old niece darted across the muddy bank to the end of the ramp.

Caroline set her valise on top of the trunk and swung Mary into her arms.

“I miss you much.” Her youngest niece planted wet kisses on her cheek.

Resisting the impulse to wipe the wetness from her face, Caroline tapped Mary’s button nose. “I missed you too. It’s good to see you.” That much was true. She hadn’t said it was good to
be back
.